According to a recent national survey commissioned by the American Society of Plastic Surgeon (ASPS), almost all women want to know the expected results of breast reconstruction surgery prior to breast cancer treatment, but few of them actually get the information. The survey showed that 89% of respondents wanted to know in advance what to expect from breast reconstruction surgery, but demonstrate little knowledge about breast reconstruction options, outcomes, and factors that can affect results of reconstructive surgery.
As a surgeon, Dr. Nagy’s most important purpose is making sure that his patients have all of the information and support needed to make an informed choice about their health. In the case of breast reconstruction specifically, there are a lot of factors that can affect the outcome and vary with each patient.
Women whose cancer seems to have been eradicated with mastectomy are the best candidates for breast reconstruction. Those with health problems such as obesity and high blood pressure and those who smoke are advised to wait. Others prefer to postpone surgery as they come to terms with having cancer, consider the extents of the procedure, or explore other alternatives.
According to the American Cancer Society in 2012:
- About 226,870 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in women.
- About 63,300 new cases of carcinoma in situ (CIS) will be diagnosed (CIS is non-invasive and is the earliest form of breast cancer).
- About 39,510 women will die from breast cancer
At this time there are more than 2.9 million breast cancer survivors in the United States. (This includes women still being treated and those who have completed treatment.) It is likely that every woman’s life will be touched by breast cancer, whether through a friend, relative or their own diagnosis. For this reason, we hope that every woman will take the time to educate herself about breast cancer, treatment and reconstruction.
Stay tuned for future blog posts and Facebook status updates about the ASPS-sponsored Breast Reconstruction Awareness (BRA) Day USA, which will occur Oct. 17th. Explore the links below for more in-depth information that was touched upon in this post.
Dr. Nagy’s Informational Breast Reconstruction Page
American Cancer Society Breast Cancer Statistics
The article about ASPS’ Study from which Study Results were pulled for this Blog